1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a fuel inlet structure for mounting in the deck of a vessel to control the filling hole of the fuel tank of the vessel and, more particularly, to such a fuel inlet structure that can conveniently be closed and opened by hand without tools.
2. Description of the Related Art
FIG. 1 illustrates a fuel inlet structure for vessel according to the prior art. According to this design, the fuel inlet structure comprises a hollow cylindrical metal casing 10 and a screw cap 12 threaded into the top side of the metal casing 10 to close the passage. The metal casing 10 has an annular top flange 11 and three screw holes 13 equiangularly spaced in the annular top flange 11. During installation, the metal casing 10 is inserted into a hole in the deck 14, and tie screws (not shown) are driven through the screw holes 13 into the deck 14 to fixedly secure the metal casing 10 to the deck 14. Because the fuel inlet structure is mounted in the deck 14 of the vessel, the top side of the fuel inlet structure must be maintained smooth so that people do not trip on the screw cap 12 of the fuel inlet structure. Therefore, a driving tool must be used when opening the screw cap 12. As illustrated in FIG. 2, the driving tool is a substantially -shaped member having a transversely extended handle 16 and two driving rods 162 vertically downwardly extended from two ends of the handle 16. Fitting the driving rods 162 into the polygonal top recess 18 of the screw cap 12 and then rotating the handle 16 with the hand remove the screw cap 12 removed from the metal casing 10. However, because the driving tool is not attached to the fuel inlet structure, it must be separately received. The worker may not be able to get the driving tool soon when wishing to open the fuel inlet structure. Further, because the tie screws fastening the metal casing 10 to the deck 14 are exposed to the weather, they tend to be covered with rust quickly.
It is therefore desirable to provide a fuel inlet structure that eliminates the aforesaid drawbacks.
The present invention has been accomplished under the circumstances in view. It is the main object of the present invention to provide a fuel inlet structure for vessel, which is maintained in flush with the deck without hindering people from passing when closed. It is another object of the present invention to provide a fuel inlet structure for vessel, which can conveniently be opened or closed by hand without tools. It is still another object of the present invention to provide a fuel inlet structure for vessel, which protects tie screws against the weather. According to one aspect of the present invention, the fuel inlet structure comprises a hollow cylindrical casing for mounting in the deck of a vessel, a plug adapted to close the casing, a movable handle supported on a spring inside the plug and vertically movable between an extended operative position for pulling by hand to remote the plug from the casing and a received non-operative position maintained in flush with the top of the plug and deck of the vessel, and a coupling member fixedly fastened to the movable handle and coupled to a track at a vertical locating plate inside the plug body and adapted to guide movement of the movable handle along the track and to selectively lock the movable handle between the extended operative position and the received non-operative position. According to another aspect of the present invention, the casing has a top mounting flange for fastening to the deck of the vessel by tie screws, and the plug has a cover plate fitting over the top mounting flange to keep the tie screws from the effect of the weather.